Paradise
by Aerle
Summary: "Oh? Oooh," Izo said again, the second time understanding. "I see. So not everyone is old, are they? Or do you have a sudden weird fetish? No no, I bet there's a young, hot guy there. Spill, Marco, what does he look like?"


This is one of my infamous "ficlet turned monster" fics. Worst thing is, there will probably be a second part XD

Posted for day 6 of the MarcoAce week with the theme 'Weather'

Warning: sexual content

Thanks MyLadyDay for beta'ing!

* * *

Marco opened his eyes after he had dozed off while lying in the sun. It had been a long time since he had properly relaxed with no people around to ask him things or last minute deals that were threatening to derail. There was no one who knew him here in this tropical paradise, and Marco hadn't expected that he would actually be able to relax. Yet here he was, lying on his deck chair in the sun next to a pool on a faraway island.

Too bad that aside from the staff, his only company were old folks.

Marco didn't mind it that much, because at least he wasn't bothered by wild parties, but he had seen one pair of teeth too many lying around, and bingo, which appeared to be pretty much the only activity, wasn't all that exciting.

Still, he wasn't about to let that ruin his vacation, no matter if it was a stupid joke from his brothers about his age. He certainly wasn't _that_ old. A vacation was something that he desperately needed, and after only a few hours there, he had already started to relax.

He closed his eyes again, sleep pulling at his subconscious, when suddenly he felt tiny drops of water hitting him. When he opened his eyes and established it hadn't suddenly started to rain, his attention was drawn to the disturbed water of the pool, and not by one of the old people swimming laps. Someone did a cannonball in the water.

Marco bit back his annoyance and tried to relax again, when that someone surfaced. The man, much, much younger than the average age around there and drop-dead gorgeous, rose from the water like in a movie, or so it looked to Marco, flipping his wet hair back and wiping the water from his face.

Marco pulled down his sunglasses a bit to look at the man over the rim. He swam to the edge of the pool and pulled himself out of the water. By doing so, his swimming trunks were pulled down slightly as well, only enough to see some treasure trail.

Marco had never wanted to go on a treasure hunt so badly before.

Two guys joined the man at the edge of the pool, a blond one and a younger one with black hair. The gorgeous man said something that made the others laugh, before pulling them into the pool. Marco noticed several elderly looking displeased.

Marco weighed his options. In comparison with most of the company, Marco was young. However, the man and his friends appeared to be even younger, early twenties maybe. He could go over there, make an ass of himself by asking the man out, or he could try to enjoy his vacation and maybe steal a glance every now and then. He decided on the latter, considering he was here to relax, not get laid, no matter what Izo said he needed. The only thing he needed was some peace and quiet.

He must have fallen asleep again, as he startled slightly when someone yelled close to him, "I got it, I got it!"

Marco had barely opened his eyes when an elbow sunk into his stomach, followed by the weight of a person, leaving him gasping for air.

The youngest guy who had been with the hot man scrambled to his feet while Marco tried to catch his breath. "Whoops," he said, before turning to his companions. "I told you I'd get it!" he announced proudly, waving with a brightly coloured Frisbee.

The hot man and his blond friend ran over to them, shock clear on their faces. "Luffy!" hot guy hissed. "Apologise right now!" It was now evident that he worked out. You could bounce a nickel off his abs.

The younger man, Luffy, apparently, turned around. "Sorry."

Hot guy hit him over the head. "Properly!"

"Ow, Ace!" Still, Luffy turned around and bowed, if only because Ace pushed his head down. "I'm sorry, mister!"

"Are you okay?" the blond man asked, a worried frown on his face.

Marco nodded, not trusting himself to talk, both because of the pain and because the hot man was there. Still, he was pleased to have found out his name. Ace. It suited him.

"We probably shouldn't have been playing with people around," Ace said, scratching the back of his head. "Lu can be a little reckless. We're sorry."

Marco waved his apology away. "It's fine," he said, sounding a little hoarse.

"We'll go play somewhere else," Ace continued, standing around a little awkwardly. He was probably wondering whether or not he should invite Marco to join them.

Not wanting to impose, Marco rose from his chair, though he still didn't dare to look Ace straight in the eye. "I should get out of the sun anyway. I'll see you around."

"Sure. Bye!"

Marco wondered if he should be offended by the relief in his voice.

* * *

By the time Marco deemed it dinner time, most of the hotel guests had already eaten. Still, the dining hall was quite full with people eating desert, drinking coffee or playing cards. Marco managed to find a free table where he sat down.

After having taken a few bites, Marco saw Ace and his friends enter the hall, immediately diving on the buffet. Marco indulged himself by glancing at Ace's ass once before returning to his food.

"Mind if we join you?"

Marco looked up to see Ace and his friends, all with plates on which food was piled up in a gravity defying way.

"We don't want to sit with the old people," Ace said, smiling sheepishly.

"Well, _older_ people," Luffy said, picking his nose. "You're old too."

Marco winced.

"Lu!" the blond guy hissed and hit him over the head. "Don't be rude!"

Ace sent Marco a charming smile, which he probably used all the time to get his way. Marco had to admit that it was working on him too.

"Don't mind him," Ace said. "So can we join you?"

Marco gestured with his hand to sit down before continuing with his meal.

Ace, Luffy and the blond man – Marco still hadn't caught his name – sat down and started talking amongst themselves. Marco minded his own business as well, but he couldn't help but be amazed with how quickly the food disappeared on the plates of his companions.

They all walked back to the buffet at least twice, and Luffy, the skinniest of the three, even three times. Marco tried to focus on reading his email and minding his own business, but it was hard not to watch and be mildly disgusted.

Eventually, he got up to get dessert. As he passed the table to get to his seat, he suddenly found his hands empty, even though he was sure he had been carrying a plate with chocolate cake only seconds before. Looking to the side, he was faced with an innocent looking Luffy, whose face was covered in brown smudges.

"Luffy!" Ace hissed.

"It's fine, it's an unlimited buffet anyway," Marco said, turning to get some more.

"That's no excuse to be rude," Ace huffed, when he suddenly seemed to realise something. "Oh! We've been rude as well! I'm Ace, and these are my brothers, Sabo and Luffy."

Now he finally knew the blond man's name. The three hardly looked alike, though, but Marco couldn't say he had many genes in common with his own family. A lot of people didn't understand the bond they had, or that they called each other family. Marco wondered what was the story behind these brothers' relationship.

Realising he was being rude himself, he hastened to introduce himself.

They all three walked back to the buffet with him, and Marco noticed that the staff was starting to look at him suspiciously, while shooting the other three death glares. They probably feared that they would eat them poor. It was a reasonable fear, but then again, they shouldn't say 'unlimited buffet'. Some people took that seriously.

"So, can I ask, how did you end up here?" Marco asked as they returned to the table, attempting to keep the conversation going. "You don't look like you have much in common with the other, eh, guests."

"And you do?" Ace asked with a snort. "Nah, Sabo won a contest, which is pretty cool, right?" He placed an arm around Sabo's shoulder, somehow managing to keep Luffy off his food with his elbow. He was probably used to it.

"So what's your story?" Sabo asked as he shoved half a cake in his mouth.

"I was sent here by my brothers," Marco replied. "I'm what one might call a bit of a workaholic, and they decided I needed a vacation. Of course, they picked the worst possible moment, because I'm super busy, but I didn't have much choice in the matter. They lured me to the airport under false pretences and before I knew it, I was through security." He sighed.

Ace laughed. "How did they manage that?"

"One of my brothers, Thatch, said he needed to get to a last minute flight and asked if I could bring him to the airport. He'd been haunting me that I work too much, so I figured it would be a way to spend time with him. It was when I nearly wanted to say goodbye that I saw he had _my_ suitcase with him. Obviously, I wouldn't have packed those swimming trunks." They were bright blue with pineapples on them and were a little too tight around the crotch. Marco wondered if Izo, because only Izo could have packed for him, had done that on purpose.

"Really? I liked them," Ace said.

Marco remembered Ace's own bright red swimming trunks with flames on them, and somehow, he wasn't surprised. He also remembered how Ace got out of the water and crossed his legs under the table. Then he wondered if he should feel flattered that Ace remembered his swimming trunks.

His phone buzzed. "Speak of the devil," Marco said with a sigh when he saw Thatch's name flash on the screen. "Wanted to see if I landed safely?" he asked as he picked up.

"Hello, darling," Izo's voice sounded. "Partly, yes, but I suppose I should also apologise. Thatch booked your vacation, and we saw too late that you would be surrounded by… Well, old folks."

"Oh, it's not so bad," Marco replied, casting a glance at Ace, who was wrestling Luffy for the last chocolate.

"Oh? Oooh," Izo said again, the second time understanding. "I see. So not _everyone_ is old, are they? Or do you have a sudden weird fetish? No no, I bet there's a young, hot guy there. Spill, Marco, what does he look like?"

"I'll talk to you when I get back," Marco said, ignoring Izo's protests as he hung up. Then he sighed again.

"Your brother?" Ace asked.

"Yeah, just not the one I was expecting."

"Really, how many do you have?" Ace asked.

Marco smirked. "Fourteen."

"F–" Ace's and Sabo's mouths fell open.

"That's a lot," Sabo finally said.

"So was he worried about you?" Ace asked once he recovered from the shock.

"Sort of. Izo thinks I need to g–" Marco stopped mid-sentence. Izo thought he needed to get laid, but if he said that, they might think Marco had a thing for elderly ladies. Which was far from the truth. And if he corrected them, they might feel uncomfortable around him, and he didn't want that. "– to relax some more," he corrected himself. "Which I can do just fine here."

"Yeah, it's pretty great. I mean, a pool, a beach, free food. I could live here," Ace said laughing.

Marco didn't quite agree, as the food was edible, but that was as far as it went. It was soft, so it didn't need to be chewed much, and it had a bland taste. Probably for the elderly. Then again, if Ace lived here, he wouldn't mind the food all that much.

"So do you have any plans while you're here?" Sabo asked. "I mean, most activities are for old people, but I think you can go dolphin watching."

"I only arrived this morning, and I pretty much fell asleep right away at the pool," Marco said, "so I haven't made any plans yet."

"Really? How long will you stay?" Ace inquired.

"A week."

"That's great! That's how long we stay. Though, our week is up in tomorrow, so…"

It suddenly felt like a stone dropped on Marco's stomach. He had only one day with Ace? He really should decide quickly what he wanted. Ace seemed to like him well enough, but Marco didn't know if he was attracted to guys at all, and even if he was, if he liked Marco that way.

And if he did like Marco, what should Marco do? They spoke the same language, but with different accents. He doubted they lived anywhere near each other. Did Marco only want to have sex with Ace? The longer he spent time with him, the more he started to like him. Maybe it could go somewhere? But what then? If they lived far away from each other, would they be able to maintain a long distance relationship?

"Hello, Earth to Marco!" Ace waved his hand in front of Marco's face, and Marco realised he had zoned out. He was going too fast anyway. First he needed to find out if Ace liked him, then he would worry about the rest.

Content with that decision, he asked, "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

Ace chuckled. "Still a bit tired?"

He cleared his throat slightly embarrassedly. If only Ace knew… "I suppose so," he said. It wasn't a total lie, only now he started to realise how much he had needed a vacation.

"I asked if you wanted to go dolphin watching with us tomorrow," Ace said. "We haven't done much else than swimming in the pool until now, to be honest. So what do you say?"

"Yeah, definitely," Marco said with a smile. He never minded being alone, but having a bit of company – especially fine company like Ace – would be nice.

"Great! We should probably sign up then. There's bingo tonight, I think, if you want to go?"

Marco was a little surprised how easily they invited him to do things. He barely knew them, yet they treated him like an old friend. Or where they just being polite? Marco really wanted to come dolphin watching with them. It may be sappy, but it sounded romantic. And well, he had always wanted to see dolphins up close. So if he went there with Ace, Sabo and Luffy, he probably should decline their invitation for tonight, right? Even if the invitation had sounded spontaneous, maybe Ace didn't really want him to come. Or perhaps Sabo and Luffy didn't want him there.

Realising he was spacing out again, he hastily said, "Bingo's not really my thing."

Ace laughed. "Ours either, but it's been fun. Luffy won a fruits basket and Sabo plum juice for life. We've been playing every night since we got here." He smiled somewhat embarrassedly.

Marco smiled. "Well, I won't keep you." He rose from his chair. "I think I'm calling it an early night."

"Okay." Did Marco imagine it or did Ace sound slightly disappointed? "See you tomorrow at breakfast then?"

It was the third invitation to join them, sort of. He really wanted to believe Ace was being sincere, but he couldn't shut up the sceptical voice that it technically wasn't an invitation to join them at breakfast. Still, he smiled. "Sure. Have fun tonight."

"If you're still up when bingo ends at ten and want to hang out, our room number is 315," Ace called after him.

Marco turned around, surprised. Ace seemed to look… hopeful? "Eh, sure," he said, before turning towards the exit of the dining hall. At the door, he couldn't resist looking over his shoulder. At the table, Ace, Sabo and Luffy were huddled together and appeared to be talking about something.

With a sigh, he headed to his room, where he took off his clothes and stepped into the shower. The last thing Ace said had definitely been an invitation. To his room no less. Well, he shared it with his brothers, but still. Then maybe he hadn't just been polite? Maybe he was interested in Marco as well?

Marco made a decision. He was definitely going to Ace's room tonight, if only to confirm or negate his suspicions. And if he happened to look extra dashing, so be it.

He lay on his bed for about an hour, but after that, nerves got to him and he started to rummage through the clothes in his suitcase to find something appropriate to wear. Damn Izo and his love for floral patterns! Fortunately, at the bottom he found his favourite purple shirt.

After he had gotten dressed and put on cologne, he looked on his phone to see the time. It was barely half past nine. With a sigh, he let himself drop on his bed again. He couldn't believe he was actually nervous. He hadn't been nervous to go on a date since… Wait, he was going too fast again. This wasn't a date, especially since Sabo and Luffy would be there as well.

Time crept by, and he hadn't read one page of the book he had opened. When it was exactly ten o'clock, Marco had to stop himself from running to the other room. If bingo ended at ten, they wouldn't be there yet, and Marco didn't want to be caught waiting in front of their room. They didn't need to know how desperate he was.

After forcing himself to wait at least ten more minutes, he strolled to the elevator and pressed the button for the third floor. Before the doors slid open, he took a deep breath and combed with a hand through his hair.

Room 315 was found easily enough, though Marco hesitated with knocking on the door, sudden doubt hitting him. What if it hadn't been a real invitation after all? Or if it was a cruel joke and this wasn't Ace's room? He could hear voices coming from inside, but they were too muffled to distinguish who they belonged to.

Shaking his head, Marco turned to leave, but then stopped again. If he left now, he wouldn't be able to sleep because he would keep wondering what was behind the door. If this was indeed not Ace's room, he could always make an excuse and leave.

Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door. Relief washed over him when Ace opened the door with a smile. "Won anything?" he asked as casually as possible.

"No." Ace pouted. "I almost won free arch support, but then this lady beat me to the punch."

"Do you need arch support then?"

"No, but it's nice to win." Ace crossed his arms before his chest. "Sabo and Lu have won something already. I can't leave empty handed."

Marco laughed, trying not to think how adorable Ace looked.

"Oh, speaking of, we reserved the dolphin thing for tomorrow afternoon," Ace continued. "If that's okay with you?"

"Sure, but don't you leave then?" Marco asked, ignoring the sinking feeling in his stomach.

"Yeah, but in the evening. We have enough time before that." Ace stepped aside. "Come on in! I'm glad you didn't fall asleep yet."

"It's still early," Marco said as he stepped past Ace into the room. He couldn't help but feel a little smug that Ace was glad he was there. He greeted Sabo and Luffy who were sitting on the bed.

"So, what do you want to do?" Ace asked as he closed the door.

Marco shrugged. "I'm not sure. What can we do?"

"We could watch a movie," Sabo suggested.

"We have fruit and plum juice," Ace added.

Marco smirked. "How can I resist an offer like that?"

Ace laughed and grabbed a bottle that probably contained the plum juice while Sabo turned on the TV. He switched channels until he found something he deemed acceptable.

Ace twisted the cap off the bottle and took a sip of plum juice, before handing the bottle to Marco. Marco hesitated taking it. Ace's eyes widened slightly. "Oh! You probably want a glass."

That wasn't it, at all. Marco had just wondered if it would be weird if he drank from the same bottle without a thought. Or should he do it to show Ace that he didn't mind swapping saliva?

He was going too fast again.

Still, he had to do something, so he grabbed the bottle from Ace's hand. "Nah, that's fine," he said and took a swig. And almost immediately spat the liquid out again. He barely managed to swallow and made a face as he looked at the bottle.

"You don't like it?" Ace asked.

"It's not really my thing," Marco said and passed the bottle to Luffy.

Ace laughed. "You should be glad you didn't win a year supply then."

"I'd prefer the arch support."

Ace laughed again, and Marco decided he liked the sound.

It wasn't long after that Marco found himself sandwiched between Sabo and Ace. Ace was lying suspiciously close, but Marco couldn't say he minded much. He wasn't really following the movie, though, as Ace kept shifting to find a comfortable position, which caused Marco's brain to work overtime.

Every now and then, the bottle of plum juice was handed between the brothers, passing over Marco's head. He was fine with that, content with eating grapes, until the bottle slipped from Ace's grip as he took it from Sabo. It had been nearly empty, which was the only consolation. The content spilled all over Marco, though.

Ace immediately started to apologise and rolled off the bed to grab a towel. Marco sighed and moved to the bathroom as well. It was a good thing his shirt had already been purple, but he hoped plum juice was easy to wash out, because this was his favourite shirt.

In the bathroom, he took it off and held it under the tap.

"Ehm, here's a towel," Ace said, handing him one, but he wasn't looking Marco in the eye. At first Marco thought it was because he felt guilty. Soon enough, though, he realised that Ace's eyes were glued to his chest.

"T-that's a cool tattoo," he said.

Marco smiled. "Thanks."

"Must have hurt. I only have the one on my arm and it hurt like hell." Ace touched his upper arm.

"Yeah, it hurt a lot, but it was worth it." Marco wrung out his shirt and inspected the stain. It seemed to all have come out. "Had to have several sessions, though."

"What does it mean?" Ace inquired, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed before his chest.

"It's a family crest."

Ace just nodded. "Do you want to borrow a shirt?" he asked when Marco wrung out his shirt again.

"It's not that far to my room."

"I know, but you might give some old lady a heart attack if she sees you like this. Because of your tattoo I mean," he hastily added.

Marco smirked. "I was at the pool bare-chested as well."

"I know. I mean, of course you were," Ace said. He seemed nervous somehow, and suddenly Marco found himself wondering if his attraction might be mutual after all. Had Ace been flirting with him all this time?

"Will you come back?" Ace asked as Marco turned to the door. "When you've found a new shirt, I mean."

"It's getting late," Marco said. "But I'll see you at breakfast?"

A bright smile stretched across Ace's face. "Sure! Good night, then!"

"Good night."

* * *

Marco had fallen asleep straight away when his head hit the pillow, but when he woke up, he wondered if he shouldn't have stayed longer with Ace the previous night. After all, he would leave today, and chances were slim that Marco would ever see him again if they didn't actively stay in touch.

Fortunately, he would still go dolphin watching with Ace, Sabo and Luffy today, which made up for a lot. Still, he decided he probably should give up on anything happening between him and Ace. Even if Ace had been flirting with him, fate had not been kind to them if they only had so little time together.

He got dressed and went downstairs to the dining hall. The breakfast buffet was already set up and it was fairly busy. Marco got some food and sat down at a table in the corner. It didn't seem that Ace, Sabo and Luffy were down yet.

"Good morning!" Ace suddenly popped up and joined Marco at the table. He looked like he just showered. Of course, that brought all kinds of inappropriate pictures in Marco's head.

He forced a smile on his face. "Morning. The others aren't up yet?"

"Nah. And it's a good idea to have a head start before Luffy wakes up. I'll just go get some food." He all but ran towards the buffet, and Marco had to laugh. Using his knife as a mirror, he checked to see if his hair was okay. If it was just Ace, it was almost like a date. If he'd known that, he would have dolled up some more.

He mentally slapped himself. He had just decided that he wasn't going to pursue anything with Ace, so what did he have to be worried about? Whether Ace liked him or not didn't matter, because nothing was going to happen.

He immediately forgot his resolve again when Ace joined him with a ridiculously high piled up plate.

"Sleep well?" he asked.

Marco hummed. "Like a log. You?"

"As well as you can with a kicker next to you," Ace replied, popping a grape in his mouth. Marco remembered seeing one double and one single bed in the room, which meant that two people had to share.

"We rotated who slept where, and I drew the short straw tonight." Ace sighed. "Oh well, I'll have my own bed once I get home again."

"Right, you're leaving today, aren't you?" Marco asked. He suddenly didn't taste the bite he took anymore.

Ace sighed again. "Yeah, unfortunately. Our plane leaves tonight. I'd love to stay longer, though." From the corned of his eye, he looked at Marco, and Marco wondered if that was a hint. For what, though, he didn't know. "So what will you do for the rest of the week?" Ace changed the topic.

Marco shrugged. "I don't know. Hike, sleep, read. Things I planned before I met you."

Ace smiled and he seemed to be about to say something, when a voice interrupted, "Morning!" Sabo joined them at the table.

"What are you doing?" Ace hissed.

"Getting a head start on Luffy," Sabo replied with a shrug. They stared at each other, seemingly settle a discussion, and Ace eventually sighed.

"Shouldn't you get a plate then?"

Marco wondered what that had been about, and he allowed himself to hope that Ace had wanted to spend time with him alone.

* * *

"What's taking him so long?" Sabo asked impatiently as he looked at his watch. They were waiting at the pier where the boat would leave from, but Ace hadn't joined them yet. "We're gonna miss the boat.

They had spent the whole day together, and Sabo and Luffy had seemed to take a liking to him, until it was time to go to the boat for the dolphins, but then Ace had suddenly ran off, mumbling about forgetting something.

"How about I go get him?" Marco suggested. "If I don't find him in time, you can just go with the tour. I can do it another day."

Sabo nodded, albeit reluctantly. "Okay, but hurry back!"

Marco ran back to the hotel, where he took the elevator to Ace's room. The boat would leave in five minutes, so they had to hurry. He hoped Ace was in the room, otherwise he had no idea where to look.

Knocking on the door, Marco noticed that it was ajar and pushed it open. The room was a mess, and for a second Marco feared that something bad had happened, when he suddenly heard Ace mutter, "Where the _hell_ is that thing?"

"Ace?" he called.

Ace sat up on the other side of the bed. It seemed he had been looking underneath it. "Marco," he said surprised.

"The boat is leaving soon, you know," Marco said.

"I _know_. I just can't find my phone!"

"Will you need it?"

"Of course! I have to take pictures!" Ace said indignantly.

"You can borrow my camera," Marco promised. While he had said to Sabo that he could always go dolphin watching another day, he really wanted to go with Ace.

Walking over to him, Marco took his hand and started to drag him towards the door. Ace gave in and hurried himself after Marco to the elevator. Hastily, Marco pressed the button for the ground floor. He hoped that Sabo and Luffy would be able to delay the boat a little.

Suddenly, there was a jolt and the lift stopped moving. The light inside blinked.

Ace squeezed Marco's hand that he was somehow still holding. "What just happened?"

"I think the elevator stopped." Marco looked aside to see Ace shoot him a deadpanned look. "Let's press the alarm button."

Ace nodded.

Marco pressed the button and waited until he heard a voice. "Hello? We're stuck in the elevator. It has stopped moving."

"Can you give me the number of the elevator?" the operator asked. "You should find it below the button."

Marco read it out loud.

"How many people are with you?"

"It's just the two of us."

"Alright, try to remain calm and move as little as possible. We'll send someone to help."

Marco sighed and let his back slide down the wall. "Guess we won't be seeing any dolphins today."

"Nope." Ace sat down next to him. "Can I borrow your phone to call Sabo?"

Marco handed the device to him.

Ace dialled the number and pressed the phone against his ear. "Hey, Sabo, it's me," he said when Sabo had picked up. "It doesn't seem like we'll make the boat." He was quiet when Sabo said something, but suddenly, his cheeks flushed red. "We're not…!" His eyes flicked over to Marco. "The elevator got stuck. We're locked in. No, you just go have fun. We'll be fine." He flustered again. "Shut up! Oh, and take lots of pictures." With a sigh, he hang up and handed Marco his phone back. "I'm sorry you had to miss the dolphins because of me."

"Don't worry about it. I volunteered to get you because I'm staying here longer than you so I can go dolphin watching another day."

"Oh." It sounded disappointed. "That's all?"

Marco looked at Ace confused. "What do you mean?"

Ace wrapped his arms around his knees and stared at the elevator buttons. "I just had the feeling you might like me."

"I do like you."

Ace laughed. "I didn't mean it like that. I meant–" He stopped talking when Marco suddenly was sitting very close.

"I know."

Ace stared at him for a second, before grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him close. Marco couldn't suppress a moan when their lips met. His fingers intertwined with Ace's hair. Gently, he pushed Ace down until he was lying on the floor of the elevator.

"Careful, the operator said we shouldn't move too much," Ace said laughing as they parted for air.

Marco hummed, though it sounded more like a growl than he had intended. He couldn't bring himself to care. Ace looked too inviting, sprawled out on the ground. Marco bent down to kiss him again.

All of the sudden, a tremble went through the elevator, and Marco sat up. "Did you feel that?"

"I definitely felt that," Ace said with a grin.

"I think the elevator moved."

"Oh." Ace popped himself up on his elbows. "I did not feel _that_."

He had barely spoken the words, when the doors of the lift slid open, revealing a mechanic and some staff of the hotel. Marco and Ace hastily scrambled to their feet and tried to tidy themselves up a bit.

The manager of the hotel, who was standing with the group as well, immediately started to apologise and offer extras, probably to get them not to sue the hotel or something.

Ace didn't listen and ran straight to the nearest window. His shoulders slumped and he sighed. "There goes the boat."

"We can immediately book you on the boat for tomorrow," the manager tried.

Ace turned around. "I'm leaving tonight, though. So unless you're willing to change the flight for me and my brothers, and offer us a free night, there's nothing you can do."

The manager remained silent. They had only been in the lift for five minutes, after all.

"You could ask for the free arch support," Marco suggested to cheer Ace up. It worked, as Ace started laughing.

"Nah, it doesn't count if I don't win it myself."

They finally managed to convince the manager that they were not going to sue the hotel, though they both got a voucher for a free massage at the chain of hotels.

"So, what do you want to do now?" Marco asked once everyone had left.

Ace shrugged. "I don't feel like doing much. Except…" He bit his lip and looked almost shyly at Marco.

Marco turned to the elevator, but changed his mind. He took Ace's hand. "Let's take the stairs." Ace's face brightened and he ran up the stairs to the second floor, where Marco's room was.

Marco had to feel for the lock and pushed his keycard in with more force than strictly necessary, but it was difficult to concentrate with Ace kissing him. There may have been people passing by, but Marco didn't care right now. As soon as they were in, he closed the door. Articles of clothing flew around, until Marco found himself sitting on the bed naked with Ace between his legs. Ace took his erection in his mouth and started sucking, sending shivers up Marco's spine.

Marco groaned. Part of him still couldn't believe this was happening – because things like this usually didn't happen to him. But he was so glad that it was. He cursed himself for never thinking to pack condoms – again, because these things usually didn't happen to him. It took him a second to realise that not he, but Izo had packed his bag. And Izo always came prepared.

"Wait," he panted, and Ace pulled back, looking up at him. He looked so hot with his swollen lips and flushed cheeks that Marco momentarily forgot why he had stopped Ace in the first place. Marco leaned down to kiss him, pulling him in his lap. Ace happily obliged. Only then Marco remembered the condoms and he pulled back. "Wait," he said again. Ace looked at him amused.

Marco rose, lifting Ace and placing him on the bed, before all but running to his suitcase. He tried to remember which compartment he hadn't checked yet, because he was pretty sure Izo would put condoms _somewhere_. At least he hoped he would.

Only then he realised that he hadn't explained his actions to Ace and that it must look somewhat strange what he was doing. He turned around to clarify, when his brain short-circuited again. Ace was lying stretched out on the bed, propped up on his elbows and looking at Marco amused. Maybe he did understand what Marco was doing.

Shaking his head violently, Marco turned back at the task at hand. After completely disposing his suitcase from the content, he finally held up his treasure triumphant. Condoms and lube. He owed Izo big time. Hastily, he made his way over to the bed. Ace welcomed him with open arms.

Leaning down to kiss him, Marco let himself be flipped on his back, with Ace on top of him. Finally, he pulled back. "So, how are we going to do this?" he asked.

"I'm fine either way," Marco said.

"Me too."

"In that case," Marco pressed the condom into Ace's hand and grinned, "I'm here to relax."

"Does that mean you want me to do you or to ride you?" Ace asked, a mischievous smirk on his face.

"Surprise me." Marco lay back and placed his hands under his head, spreading his legs a little to give Ace access in case that was necessary.

That proved to be the case. Ace leaned over him, kissing him passionately as his finger pushed inside Marco's body. It had been a while since he had been fucked, and he was looking forward to having Ace do it.

Soon, one finger wasn't enough anymore. Marco pulled Ace close to him, never ceasing to kiss him. Slowly, he realised that he had been craving more than sex. He needed intimacy. He only knew Ace for about a day, yet it felt they had a special connection. He wondered if Ace felt the same.

Feeling Ace's body against his was amazing, better than he could have dreamt when he saw Ace come out of the pool the first time. Marco intertwined his fingers with Ace's hair and pulled him closer towards him. He could feel Ace's heavy breath against his skin as Ace moved in and out of him.

It lasted far too short for his liking, but his body was buzzing contently with post-climactic glee.

Ace returned to the bed after throwing away the condom and curled up against Marco. "That was really nice," he said, and Marco could feel him grin against his skin. He wrapped an arm around Ace, sharing his sentiment.

Ace laughed and kissed him on the cheek. "I feel less bad about missing the dolphins now." Marco hummed in agreement.

They kissed some more before Ace finally sat up on the bed. "I guess I should start packing. I kinda made a mess just now when I was looking for my phone."

"Do you want me to help you?" Marco asked.

Ace laughed again. "I would, but I fear you'll only distract me. I'm not sure when exactly Sabo and Luffy will be back, but I don't want them to catch us in a compromising position. Do you mind if I use your shower first, though?"

When Marco nodded, he turned around to head into the bathroom, but there was something Marco had to ask first. "Ace."

Ace turned to him.

"What happens now?"

The smile fell from Ace's face and he sighed as he combed with his hand through his hair. "I don't know," he admitted. "I like you, and this was great, but we've only known each other for a day. Plus, we hardly live close to each other. I think it's best to chalk this up as a great holiday memory, don't you?"

Marco smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "I suppose you're right."

Ace nodded, hesitated for a moment and then entered the bathroom.

Marco sighed as he fell back on the bed. It was hardly the answer he had hoped to hear, but he couldn't argue with the logic. They did only knew each other for a day, and Marco had learned that they didn't live close. Starting a relationship, no matter how much Marco wanted it, would be silly.

Still, that didn't mean he could just let Ace go home without looking back. Slipping out of bed, he retrieved a pen and paper, and wrote down his email address and Skype name. When he heard the shower turn off, he hastily put the paper in Ace's pant pocket and dove back on the bed.

A few minutes later, Ace came out of the bathroom. He smiled at Marco, and Marco smiled back, hoping he didn't look too nervous. Ace pulled on his pants and put on his shirt. Marco's heart clenched when he seemed about to reach into his pocket, when his hand moved up to scratch the back of his head.

"Right," he muttered, "lost my phone." He turned to Marco. "Well, bye, I guess." It sounded lame, and he seemed to realise as much.

"Ace, would it be alright if I came with you to the airport?" Marco suddenly blurted out.

Ace's face brightened. "Yeah, sure! I'll let you know when we leave." After a moment of hesitation, he walked over to the bed and kissed Marco one last time. "Bye," he said, and this time it sounded less lame and more heart wrecking.

* * *

Marco had showered, gotten dressed and started reading when there was a knock on his door. A little too eager, he jumped up, but instead of Ace, Sabo was standing in front of his door.

"Yeah, we figured if we send Ace, we would miss our flight," he said deadpanned before Marco could say a word. "Ace is checking us out."

Marco decided not to comment on it, because he could very well be right. "How were the dolphins?" he asked instead.

Sabo's face brightened. "Really great! You should definitely go sometime. So are you coming? Our cab's standing ready." He gestured with his head.

"Yeah." Marco grabbed his room key and wallet before following Sabo to the elevator.

"Or would you rather not take it? I mean, you got out after only five minutes, but still."

Marco scratched the back of his head. With everything else happening, he had almost forgotten about being locked in the elevator. "It's fine."

Sabo shrugged and pressed the button.

Ace and Luffy were waiting for them in the lobby surrounded by suitcases. When Ace saw Marco, he smiled a little insecurely.

They were mostly silent during the cab ride. Marco only dared to ask if Ace had found his phone – which he had – and Luffy if the dolphins had been fun. Luffy started to tell them all the details of the trip excitedly.

At the airport, Marco asked the cabdriver to wait as he followed Ace, Sabo and Luffy inside. Before they went through security, Ace turned around. "Well, thanks for everything."

Marco forced a smile on his face. "You're welcome. Have a safe trip."

"Promise you'll have fun."

Marco looked up surprised, but Ace looked at him strictly, so he nodded. "I will."

Ace smiled. "Good."

An awkward silence fell, until Sabo elbowed Ace in the side. He shot Sabo a nasty look, before coughing and turning to Marco. He reached his hand in his pocket and fished out the note.

Marco paled slightly. "I'd hoped you wouldn't find that until you were already on the plane."

"I almost didn't find it at all. It fell out of my pocket when I got my phone. Sabo saw it."

"You don't have to do anything with it," Marco said hastily. "I just wanted to give you the option. Even though you made your opinion clear."

"Obviously, you don't agree." Ace took a step closer and tilted his head up. "So you'll have to change my mind."

Marco happily obliged and kissed him as Ace wrapped his arms around him. They only parted when Sabo cleared his throat.

"Not to ruin your fun, but we have a plane to catch."

"Right." Ace turned around and grabbed his suitcase. He looked over his shoulder an winked at Marco. "It's a good thing that the hotel has free wifi."


End file.
